Ball grid array (BGA) and land grid array (LGA) packages are becoming increasingly popular because of their low profiles and high densities. With a BGA package, for example, the rounded solder balls of the BGA are generally soldered directly to corresponding surface mount pads of a printed circuit board rather than to plated thru-holes which receive pins from, for example, a pin grid array (PGA) IC package.
Sockets allow particular IC packages to be interchanged without permanent connection to a circuit board. More recently, sockets for use with BGA and LGA packages have been developed to allow these packages to be non-permanently connected (e.g., for testing) to a circuit board. However, problems can exist in attaching a BGA package to sockets using conventional compression devices that are subject to misuse. In some instances, users under-compress IC packages so that adequate contact is not made between the package and the socket. In other instances, users damage IC packages by over-compressing them in an attempt to compensate for the first problem.